We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Liv Shin a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Liv , so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
I will always remember the phone call I made about a year ago when me and my two other business partners move into our first office in California to launch our West Coast branch. I found her cell number online and identified her because she had mutual connections with me on Linkedin with other women in healthcare, some being my clients. As a financial planner serving this group, it seemed like the sensical thing to do.
As most people respond, she was confused why I was calling her. Apparently, many executives and consultants in healthcare frequently receive random no caller ID dials from ambitious individuals looking for jobs. I clarified with her that I wasn’t in the market for a job but would love the opportunity to share how I served people like her. By the end of our call, she didn’t become a client. However, I did wrap the call with one question – “Is there any feedback you would give to me so I don’t spook someone else when I call them?” She laughed. That stood with her so much that it wasn’t ever our last call.
I chatted with her a month later, and then added her to my monthly newsletter and key initiatives to grow my practice. I kept her updated with what I was doing in creating clarity and financial peace for many healthcare professionals through financial planning. There’s not a lot of Asian women financial advisors in the industry, and there was something that gravitated her to me, one that she later addressed when she told me she was ready for me and my team to serve her in all her finances. This was one year later. Some things simply take time. What was it that drew her in?
-That I didn’t hold back from being the only one in the room that looks like me.
If I were to sum up a key learning to finding success in an industry where you don’t feel represented, it would be to ask for advice and cling to those who see something in you and your vision. The power of building advocacy around people starts with having the humility to ask for help, the courage to do something that’s never been done before, and the resilience in seasons of drought or intensity. You must fight the comfortable temptation to complain or justify complacency because your difference may be your very own superpower to be the change you want to see. Again – some things take time. It’s taken a couple of California launch teams to do it right, but we are currently the only office in our firm that has a greater female to male ratio, and are at office #3 in California as we expand and have a lot more work to do.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
As a comprehensive financial planner serving women in healthcare, I meet with individuals and families in helping them achieve their financial goals. This could look like anything, some examples being retirement planning, tax planning, and/or legacy planning. I love my job because I get to build relationships and help equip my clients with education and planning to turn their dreams into reality.
I work with an independent Texas-based firm called 49 Financial that is built on this idea that “Two Are Better Than One.” I was drawn by the mission and people within the company and really appreciate how much 49 values teamwork in collaborating with me to find the best solutions and strategies for my clients.
While starting my practice in Austin, TX, I received the opportunity to expand 49 Financial to Los Angeles in July 2023 with two other partners. Aside from building my personal practice, I serve as an Associate Team Lead in California, growing our team through mentoring newer advisors and recruiting values-aligned individuals. Outside of work, I write children’s books, teach indoor cycle classes, and enjoy volunteering in children’s ministry at my church in Seal Beach.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
1. If you aren’t failing, you aren’t trying. So much of being an entrepreneur and differentiating yourself is like throwing different pieces of dough at a wall to see which one sticks. I can go down the list on initiatives and ideas I’ve tried that have only drained the bank account or drove little to no results. Building my practice around serving women in healthcare is one example of it – it wasn’t until about a year into the career where I met another strong advocate and high industry leader in healthcare who pushed me to build my book around serving single women in healthcare like her. This takes me to my next tip when your trial doesn’t go successful:
2. Learn to build a resilient mindset that things don’t happen to you but for you. While I shared the story of the client who has been a huge part of my practice and have connected me to so many more women I get to call my clients, I also have stories of folks who have told me they don’t want to do business with me because of the diversity within my company. It’s frustrating when you feel like you are trying to make a change and people want to see it before they become part of it. So much of advocacy is not just asking for help, but also advocating for yourself with a healthy mindset. I’ve equally used this story as my story of clients who have believed in me and want every part of what I am doing as ammo to bring more women in the industry as well as serve more women in their finances.
3. Find a mentor(s). I’m grateful to have a boss who is my mentor and makes time with me every week to check in with me and my practice. We serve most all of my clients together, and it has been such a gift to have someone who supports me consistently and reminds me that I am not alone. Good mentors will equip you and introduce different paths rather than paving it for you. Good mentors will check in with you not just professionally but also personally. Good mentors will prioritize and advocate for your mental health even if it means slowing down business goals or taking a demotion. I give most of my credit to my boss who has mentored me in ways that has only excelled my growth as a business owner and human.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
A book that has completely changed the way that I think about my life and career, especially this season of my life is “The Defining Decade” by Meg Jay. I have always been an ambitious and driven person, but this book has really changed my perspective on taking an even deeper level of courageous ownership in my 20s. I like to explain my first 20 years of life as being the “bold homebody” because while I was bold, I was only bold at things I knew I would excel in or was “close to home” to me and my skillset.
The book talked about how 80% of life’s most defining moments happen in your 20’s and the ones who do it right are the ones who are bold with the uncomfortable. The author lists studies and statistics on how we develop in areas that we aren’t good at by putting ourselves in those uncomfortable areas even more! I feel that our society breeds this culture of finding the comfortable job out of college even if it isn’t your passion or caps you at the potential you can discover in your 20s because you’ll have time to do the riskier role later when you have money and stability. In my opinion, the problem is 1) you won’t ever know that, and 2) the problem is that you miss out on so many opportunities to not just develop your title but develop yourself as a person.
To the 20- something year old – now is the time to be bold. Now is the time to try the thing you’ve always wanted to do. Now is the time to fail…and if you do, you know you tried and can move on to something else that is a better fit. But don’t take my word for it or even Meg Jay’s word for it. Try it for yourself.
Contact Info:
- Website: livshin49.com
- Instagram: livshin49
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/livshin49/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/livshin13/
- Other: Personal Blog: shindigpublishing.com/blog
